3 Lowell residents charged with veterans' ID theft

Tuesday

Sep 30, 2008 at 12:01 AM

Lowell residents charged with veterans' ID theft

Lowell residents charged with veterans' ID theft

BOSTON — Authorities have arrested three people accused of stealing the identities of disabled veterans living at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Bedford and using the data to make purchases worth more than $1,000.

Christina DiIorio-Sterling, spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan, says 41-year-old Wilfredo Hernandez and his mother, 60-year-old Gladys Hernandez, of Lowell, pleaded not guilty hours after they were arrested Monday.

A third suspect, 27-year-old Jessica Rivera, will appear in court Oct. 9.

Prosecutors say the younger Hernandez and Rivera used to work for the hospital. They allegedly stole checks, credit card and bank account numbers from combat veterans living there and shared the information the older Hernandez.

If convicted, they each face up to 15 years imprisonment.

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